BY Mbongiseni Ndzimandze and Kwanele Dlamini
MBABANE – The woman who allegedly recruited people, arranged bank accounts and supplied fraudulent employment documents to obtain vehicle finance in a suspected fraud scheme at FNB Eswatini has been uncovered.
Bonisile Hlatshwako is alleged to have coordinated transactions involving vehicles whose financing has become the subject of a High Court preservation order.
The order relates to a white 2025 Haval Jolion, a grey 2025 Nissan Magnite and a white 2026 Toyota Hilux single cab. The director of public prosecutions (DPP) alleges that the vehicles were bought using money obtained through fraudulent car-loan applications involving employees of First National Bank Eswatini (FNB Eswatini).
The application was brought under the Prevention of Organised Crime Act (POCA), 2018, which allows the court to preserve property believed to be the proceeds of unlawful activities while forfeiture proceedings are pursued.
The latest development follows earlier reports by this publication about suspected car-loan fraud at FNB Eswatini, with the wider investigation reported to involve potential losses exceeding E20 million.
The three vehicles covered by the preservation application are linked to alleged losses totalling E1 898 389.93.
According to the founding affidavit by Principal Crown Counsel Elsie Matsebula, who is also the Operational Head of the DPP’s Asset Forfeiture Unit, the vehicles were allegedly financed through fraudulent applications supported by false or questionable documents.
The affidavit relies on investigations by Detective/Sergeant Thami Mabuza of the Royal Eswatini Police Service’s Money Laundering and Asset Forfeiture Unit, as well as information supplied by FNB Eswatini’s forensic specialist.
The investigating officer states that on August 11, 2026, he received information about Sibusiso Dube, Buyisizwe Makhosi Dlamini and Mlungisi Nkhululeko Mamba, who were suspected of submitting fraudulent documents when applying for car loans.
Investigations established that the employment confirmation letters submitted with the applications were not genuine. According to the investigator, Dube and Dlamini had not been employed by SBQ Investments in the positions stated in the documents.
The registrar of companies confirmed that SBQ Investments was registered and that Hlatshwako was listed as its director. Investigators say the company’s registration details were used alongside employment documents to support applications for vehicle finance.
During the investigations, it was established that Hlatshwako allegedly obtained personal documents from individuals, assisted with opening bank accounts and facilitated loan applications. Certain FNB Eswatini employees allegedly assisted with opening accounts and approving loans.
One of the accounts mentioned in the court papers concerns Dube, who said he had known Hlatshwako for more than 20 years. He said he had previously done odd jobs for her grandmother, Lomthantazo Motsa.
According to Dube’s statement, Hlatshwako approached him and told him that his dream of owning a car was about to come true.
He said she arranged for him to open an account at Standard Bank, but took possession of his bank card.
Three days later, Dube said, Hlatshwako told him he would earn E20 000 a month after being made a director at Mothen Vegetables Company.
However, investigations found that Dube had not actually been employed in that position. The alleged employment arrangement forms part of the evidence relied on by investigators to question the information submitted in support of the loan application.
Dube said Hlatshwako took him to the GWM dealership at Moneni, where he obtained a quotation for a Haval vehicle. He was then expected to submit the quotation to the bank as part of the finance application.
He later received word from Hlatshwako that FNB Eswatini had approved the loan and that he needed to sign documents before receiving the vehicle.
Dube said Hlatshwako and her mother, Mpho, took him to the bank’s Gables branch and told him to look for David Dlamini, who assisted him with signing the documents.
“Around September, Hlatshwako arrived at my home driving a white Haval Jolion. He asked about the vehicle he had been promised’” states the statement by Dube.
He then received a message indicating that E20 000 had been deposited into his Standard Bank account. Dube said Hlatshwako told him to transfer E2 000 to himself through Unayo, while she used the remainder.
The second account concerns Dlamini, who said he met Hlatshwako in Matsapha in June 2025. He said they spoke about their shared wish to own a van for business purposes.
Dlamini stated that he gave Hlatshwako E60 000, which his father had provided, as a deposit for a Toyota GD6. He also gave her his personal particulars. She allegedly promised that he would receive the vehicle by December 2025.
When the promised date passed without the vehicle being delivered, Dlamini said Hlatshwako told him the matter was with the bank and beyond her control.
He later received a call from a woman who identified herself as Ketsie Mngometulu and said she was calling from WesBank. She sent him documents to sign.
Dlamini said he went to Leites Motors in Manzini after being told that the vehicle was ready for collection, but staff informed him that no deposit had been paid.
According to his statement, Mngometulu later arranged another meeting at the dealership on June 4, 2026. Dlamini said he met a woman identified as Magagula, signed documents and received the blue book for a white Toyota GD6 single cab.
He said he was told to pay E11 600 a month for seven years.
Investigators linked the Toyota to a loan application supported by documents that allegedly contained inconsistencies. The information in the affidavit does not, by itself, establish that Dlamini knowingly participated in a fraudulent transaction.
The investigation also examined bank statements and account details submitted with the vehicle-finance applications.
According to Detective/Sergeant Mabuza, a Standard Bank account number used in Dlamini’s loan application belonged to Alnoor Investment (Pty) Ltd, trading as Valley View International School, rather than to Dlamini.
Investigators obtained bank statements and account-opening documents through a court order. These records were used to compare the information supplied with the loan applications against information held by the bank.
It was found that the Standard Bank account associated with Dlamini was opened in November 2025. An FNB account in his name was opened later that month.
Funds were allegedly transferred into the FNB account from SBQ Investments and Phetsile Ndobe, while other deposits were made through automated teller machines. Investigators say the transactions formed part of the inquiry into how the account was used in connection with the vehicle finance.
FNB Eswatini’s internal investigation also identified concerns about the documents submitted for the Haval and Nissan applications.
In the Haval transaction, the Standard Bank account number on the statement submitted with the application differed from the number captured on the bank’s system. The bank’s forensic specialist said the first debit order was deducted from the account reflected on the submitted statement, prompting a query from Standard Bank before the account details were changed.
The investigation also found that a utility bill submitted with the Haval application was invalid, according to the affidavit.
In the Nissan application, investigators identified a Standard Bank statement that allegedly contained an impossible date: February 30, 2025. The affidavit states that the loan was linked to Mamba and that the employment letter submitted with the application identified him as working for BHM Investments, a company allegedly associated with Hlatshwako.
The court papers also name bank employees when describing how the loans were processed.
A FNB Eswatini forensic specialist stated that the Haval application was processed by David Dlamini, described as a WesBank Business Development Officer. According to the affidavit, Dlamini said he initially captured the information from the documents supplied by the customer and later changed the account details after receiving another account number.
The papers also identify employees involved in processing the Nissan and Toyota transactions. Investigators allege that certain bank employees assisted Hlatshwako with opening accounts and approving loans.
The allegations concern the handling of the applications and the documents submitted to support them. They do not amount to findings of criminal guilt against any person named.
The DPP, who was represented by Thulani Mamba, says the investigation is continuing and that further transactions may come to light.
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